Better Safe Than Sorry

Everyone is getting worried about ebola. I've heard from people in the medical field and I've heard politicians (both Democrats and Republicans) from Florida, Colorado, North Carolina and elsewhere all calling for a ban on travel from the West Africa countries which have an epidemic of ebola.

It's time to be Safe Rather Than Sorry, put up this additional barrier and continue the existing medical filters to keep people with ebola out and to quarantine those who somehow still get here.

It's unfortunate we should have to do something like this, but the American people have every right to be concerned and demand their government help them avoid a catastrophe.

In Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell says Clean Coal Doesn't Exist and that He's for Jobs

Clean Coal According to NBC News

In 1984 McConnell Objected to a New Coal Plant in Kentucky


McConnell, like many Republicans, wants to appear one way for the voters back home, but in Washington acts another way. He said Kentuckians can keep their Kynect website (funded by Obamacare / ACA ), but he would get rid of the ACA. How can Kynect connect to the government agencies necessary to operate properly if the ACA is ended? How can the insurance companies who would offer policies via Kynect be regulated to offering comparable good quality policies if the ACA is ended? Nope, it can't. But, McConnell wants people to think Kynect was just a website invented by Kentuckians and that's all it is, just a simple website. But, it's not.

Many Republicans around the country do this, but McConnell is the leader of the Republicans in the U.S. Senate. He sets the tone for much of what happens in Washington and his main priority he announced just after Obama was elected president was to make him a failure, a one-term president. To that end he has filibustered more than any time in the past and opposed the president tooth-and-nail.

In the House of Representatives the Republicans are doing much the same thing. Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-Ohio) pretends to be Speaker of the Majority and only brings bills up for debate & a vote if they have support from the Republicans. That's never been done before. The Speaker is supposed to Speak for the whole House, not just his own party.

To end that kind of hypocrisy and gridlock we need new Republican leaders and a clear Democratic majority in the House and Senate to get things done.

A Few Musical Selections

The son of a cousin of mine plays violin -- somewhere in there

and another song from the same show. The singer is very good!

Jazz by Stan Getz and Bill Evans -- Night and Day

Joe Bonamassa & band with Beth Hart shoutin the blues!

I hope you enjoy them all. I did.

The Next Step in Political Argument

The Republicans are desperate and will slander, lie or anything to gain ground, especially in the close races. One original idea is something the Pat Roberts campaign is doing in Kansas. They're trying to make the old man look like a powerful figure in Washington, willing to stop the president single-handedly with a filibuster by claiming the president wants to immediately do something Roberts opposes. But, the White House response was "What?" They knew nothing of this supposed plan. Apparently the Roberts campaign just made it up to have an argument because they were losing. That's creative.

In West Virginia the Repbublican, Shelley Capito, is simply claiming motherhood and apple pie. I think she has no answer to the charges leveled by her opponent, the Democrat Natalie Tennant.

In many of these races the negativism has been both depressing and frustrating -- the real debate gets lost sometimes.

I think it's time, the election is near, to begin a positive policies only trend, so the public will know precisely (and have it in their minds) what the Democrats want to do in office. Give them a reminder in clear terms what they can vote FOR.

Of course, I prefer the set of policies which enable people to live out their version of The American Dream. I prefer the "family-friendly" set of policies. I prefer the Democratic policies which have already been enunciated in the last several years. It's a long list, so each candidate/campaign has to fashion a statement which fits their own views and recent utterings.

W. Va. Senatorial Debate

The debate just ended and I was impressed with the performance of Sec. Tennant. The moderator also impressed me and he hasn't always done that in past years. His questions were well-placed and worded and led to very good debate discussion. Rep. Capito tried to fight, but sounded too canned and awkward when she tried to either repeat a prepared argument or to speak her own words. Sometimes she said things which were ungrammatical and she couldn't make sense. That's not to say she didn't land a few punches.

They talked about West Virginia, its economy, its people and the nation's foreign policy. They didn't try to nationalize the race and talk about the national issues unless they were closely related to the state and our people. That kind of focus can be good, but when you're talking about a U.S. Senate seat it's important to realize those senators vote to confirm federal Court judges and they usually have much longer and more complete debates about all issues, particularly foreign policy. I want a senator who is capable of thinking and standing up to a wayward president or Court nominee and not just someone who thinks about W. Va.

Sec. Tennant's main blows against Capito were her recent t.v. ad arguments that Capito is too tied to Wall St. bankers and the difference between Capito's words and official votes. I thought this part of the debate was clearly good for Tennant and Capito didn't have much of a rebuttal.

I suspect Sec. Tennant's experience with television broadcasting made it easier for her to handle this debate. Many people wouldn't be comfortable in front of t.v. cameras. Well, she showed by her discussion points that it wasn't just her comfort level which made her appear relevant, it was the content of her arguments. Bravo Sec. Tennant.

North Carolina Congressional Debate: Ellmers vs. Aiken

I just watched their debate and I was very impressed. I didn't expect to be, so this was a big surprise. Both candidates looked good, spoke clearly, used talking points and spoke directly to the immediate issue, and perhaps most importantly, they found ways to turns the discussion to their favor. This was most impressive as usually neither candidate in a Congressional race can do that and it's rare when even one candidate can.

The discussion hit on all the major issues of the day and I didn't really see either candidate landing a knockout punch. Each scored points for jabs and a few longer sequences, but then the other would come right back and do the same.

I don't know what the people of that district want, but they have two intelligent candidates from which to choose.

Personally, I can't imagine any individual Republican representative having the ability to do more than vote for their party line and Ms. Ellmers had difficulty showing she wasn't just another brick in that "just say no" wall. OTOH, Clay Aiken's belief that new members of Congress who believe in establishing relationships across the aisle and talking to everyone may be a bit naïve too.

Of course, party leadership decides whether to continue the House Speaker's rule of only allowing votes on bills the majority of the Republican caucus will approve. As far as I know the Democrats who have been Speaker never did that.

I look forward to seeing the polls and hearing how this race goes. It appears to be a tough one.

As the Close Races Near the End

I've seen Republicans turn nasty in W.Va., so I wouldn't be surprised if they bring out the "guns from hell" everywhere to smear their opponents in hopes of turning close races into wins.

It shows they don't really believe the issues and proposed policies are really important so long as they can get into office. If they really believed that it was what they propose to do in office, then they would focus entirely on policies and leadership.

Republicans are offering no leadership, only hate and lies.

In Kentucky, Mitch McConnell doesn't care that he's opposed all federal gov't efforts to improve the economy (for Kentucky and all of America), he just wants to make his opponent, Alison Lundergan Grimes, look bad. I suppose he thinks they already know what he would do in office -- just say "No". Vote for Grimes to have an a real positive agenda for America.

In West Virginia's 3rd District House race they're trying the same kind of smear campaign against Rep. Nick Rahall. A few years ago they did the same against the 1st District Rep who was a Democrat and they won, so I suppose they'll keep using the same tactic. But, Rahall has been a good representative for the state. Do West Virginians care about policies or just appearances.

I wonder where the other smear campaigns are around the country. The national media doesn't usually tell us.